THE WHITE HOUSE

 Office of the Press Secretary

______________________________________________________________________________

For Immediate Release                                                                           January 31, 2005

President George W. Bush today announced that he has named Dr. Jack D. Crouch II Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor.  Dr. Crouch is the U.S. Ambassador to Romania where he has worked to expand democracy in the region, increase cooperation between the United States and Romania in the global war on terror, and foster Romania’s incorporation into Western security institutions including NATO and the European Union.

“J.D. Crouch’s extensive experience in national defense and foreign policy will make him a valued member of my national security team.  I appreciate his willingness to continue to serve my Administration in this new capacity,” stated President Bush. 

Dr. Crouch served as Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Policy from August 2001 through October 2003.  He was the principal advisor to the Secretary of Defense on the formulation and coordination of policy for NATO, Europe, Russia, the Central Asian Republics, the Caucuses and the Balkans, nuclear forces, missile defense, technology security policy, counterproliferation, and arms control.

Earlier in his career, Dr. Crouch was the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Policy.  From 1984 to 1986, he worked for the Assistant Director for Strategic Programs in the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency and was an advisor to the U.S. Delegation on Nuclear and Space Arms Talks with the former Soviet Union.

Dr. Crouch received his bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, and his Ph.D. in International Relations from the University of Southern California. 

• Ambassador Crouch has met with Prime Minister Nastase on three different occasions and has discussed the issues of the pending cases;

• Ambassador Crouch has met with other Ambassadors in Bucharest in regard to the pending cases;

• The State Department has taken a strong lined approach that these cases must be resolved;

• The country of Romania has indicated that they do not want to aggressively pursue the resolving of these cases until the recommendation report for ascension to the EU has been published. *The report was issued last week. No word on how this may impact the progress of the stated plan.

• The Romanian government has indicated that they are looking at the development of a commission. The purpose of this commission would only be to address the pending cases from all countries which were filed/referred under the Emergency Ordinance.

• The US Government is working with the country of Romania to pass a law in parliament that will allow the pending cases to be brought to completion after the January 1 deadline of the new law is implemented;

• The State Department has asked the Joint Council of International Children’s Services to recommend wording to determine the criteria for pending cases to be identified and processed;

• The State Department is committed to suggesting language that will create a transparent processing of the pending cases;

• The State Department is committed to having a broad approach for defining the pending cases;

• The State Department has engaged in conversations and cooperatively worked with European countries with pending cases, however, the State Departments goal is to resolve US pending cases.

• A follow-up meeting will be scheduled the end of October to discuss the progress on the issue of pending cases.
   

July 28, 2004 - JCICS participated in conference call with the Department of State, White House representatives and another NGO about the situation in Romania and the plan for pending cases.

Joint Council Advocacy - In the wake of the recent adoption law in Romania, Joint Council is continuing to advocate for a more reasonable child welfare law that permits  intercountry adoption in the best interest of the child.  We continue to advocate for pending cases to be processed and for intercountry adoption to remain a viable option for children in need of permanent families throughout the world. 

• In response to a recent news article written by the Baroness Emma Nicholson, Joint Council wrote a Letter to the Editor of the Guardian Unlimited, a UK paper.

• Prior to President Illiescu signing the law, Joint Council sent a letter expressing our concern regarding the adoption legislation.  For a copy of the letter, click here.

Adoptive Families -- Adoptive families who have accepted a referral of a Romanian orphan are asked to contact the Office of Children’s Issues at askci@state.gov. In your correspondence please provide your name, your child’s name and adoption registration number, a description of the status of your adoption and your contact information. Please include “Romanian Adoption” in the subject line.

June 21, 2004 - Romanian President Iliescu signed into law a draft adoption bill that limits international adoption to a child’s grandparents. The law was published in the Romanian Government Monitor on June 22, making the law official, according to the State Department's website. 

On June 22, EU enlargement commissioner Guenter Verheugen congratulated Romania for a new law restricting the possibility for foreigners to adopt Romanian children.  Click here for the news article.

June 15, 2004 - The Romanian Chamber of Deputies voted to approve the proposed adoption law that essential ceases all international adoptions (the only exception is adoption by a child’s grandparents). The law is now awaiting President Iliescu's signature.  Although the law provides him with 20 days to sign the bill, it is expected that he will do so relatively soon as he has made references to his intent to sign.   

The next step is to follow up with the Romanians regarding pipeline cases.  In February, it was indicated that cases with the President's signature would be processed and we have heard no evidence contradicting this point. Although the law states that additional pending cases (those without the President's signature) will be processed according to the new law (which prohibits international adoption therefore the cases would not be recognized) we are seeking clarification. 

Our thoughts are with the children left behind with little hope of finding a permanent family and with the families who have endured years of waiting only to hear this difficult news.  We will continue advocating for the children and will keep you apprised of any new developments.

June 10, 2004 - The U.S. Embassy in Romania has learned through the press that the Prime Minister's proposal to ban, in essence, inter-country adoptions has been approved by the Juridical Committee of the Chamber of Deputies without meaningful change. This legislation has NOT yet been approved by the full Chamber. 

The U.S. Government feels that the Romanians do not have the capacity to absorb current numbers of abandoned and orphaned children through domestic means, absent recourse to long-term institutionalization, which clearly is not in the best interests of the child.  The U.S. recommendations on this matter have been repeatedly provided and it is their hope that the Chamber of Deputies will consider appropriate modifications, in the interest of these children, when it debates the bill.

For a full copy of the press release, click here.

June 2004 - The new adoption law was approved by the Romanian Senate on March 11th and is scheduled to be voted on by the House of Deputies after the elections in June.  As currently written, the new adoption legislation would essentially stop all intercountry adoptions.  Many groups, including JCICS, have been advocating to the Romanians, the European Union and to the U.S. Government for changes to be made in the legislation to allow intercountry adoptions to resume.  It is our hope that the various parties involved can pursue an agreeable revision of the legislation that would permit intercountry adoption. 

April 2004
CCAI sent a letter to the President of the European Parliament.   Click here for a copy of the letter. 

April 9, 2004
Recently there have been media reports that the Romanian "Chamber of Deputies decided that the adoption requests made by the foreign citizens or Romanian citizens resided abroad should be solved according to the regulations in force when inserting the requests", thereby re-instating the Emergency Ordinance.

However, the Romanian Embassy in Washington, DC has confirmed that only the pipeline cases previously approved and signed by the Prime Minister would continue under the Emergency Ordinance. There are an estimated 36 cases in the United States that would meet that definition and be allowed to proceed. At this time, it is unknown how additional cases which have been filed but not yet approved will be handled. 

March 31, 2004
Joint Council met with representatives from the Delegation of the European Commission to the United States to discuss the current situation in Romania. JCICS requested that the Commission:

Ø      Ensure that adoption legislation passed by the Romanian government adheres to the tenets and principles outlined in the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-Operation In Respect of Intercountry Adoption and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Ø      Emphasize through diplomatic communication with the European Parliament and other EU delegates that international adoption is the best option for children who cannot be permanently placed within their country of birth. 

Joint Council has also prepared an information sheet for press or those interested in background information on this issue.

JCICS is concerned about this new development and is exploring various possibilities of what can be done to allow intercountry adoptions to continue.  We will update this site as we learn of new developments. 

• Click here for the JCICS letter to Prime Minister Nastase (2/4/04) 

• Click here for the JCICS letter to Ambassador Guest regarding pending (2/18/04)

There have been many new developments in Romania over the past few weeks.  Romania released a new draft of their proposed adoption law.  JCICS has concerns with the proposed law and have outlined these issues in a letter sent to the Romanian government. 

In addition, the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute sent a letter to Prime Minister Nastase urging international adoption be given priority over foster care. Twenty-one members of Congress signed the letter which was sent the week of February 16th. 

On February 10, during discussions with the Embassy of Romania we were told that the law would be sent to the Parliament from the Cabinet sometime in February and that the Parliament is slated to pass the law in May.  Afterwards, a six month implementation period would commence. 

It appears that Prime Minister Nastase is under considerable pressure following reports of 105 children being approved for adoption during the moratorium by Italian families in December of 2003.  While these children appear to have fallen under the emergency ordinance, this has spurned negative press against international adoption and some individuals have stated that Romania's entry into the EU scheduled to occur in 2007 may be in jeopardy.  On Friday, February 6, 2004 Romania repealed it's Emergency Ordinance.  Click here for the Romanian press release regarding this repeal.    

JCICS has met with Congressional offices and is discussing the situation with the U.S. government.  We are currently awaiting verification from the Department of State regarding the processing of pending cases now that the Emergency Ordinance has been suspended.  As we learn of more information we will update this page.  

The Romanian government has extended its moratorium on adoptions until new legislation governing adoption is implemented. The actual date of enactment and implementation of the new legislation cannot be predicted at this time.

The Romanian Adoption Committee (RAC) announced a one-year moratorium on inter-country adoption beginning June 21, 2001. That decision formalized a de facto suspension of international adoptions that had been in effect since Prime Minister Nastase's government took office in December 2000. The government has extended that moratorium numerous times, pending passage and implementation of new legislation intended to eliminate corruption from Romania's adoption system.

We know that this issue is a difficult one for the many Americans who are interested in adopting Romanian children. Our Ambassador in Bucharest and other senior U.S. government officials have engaged vigorously with the highest levels of the Romanian government to seek a reinstatement of international adoptions. In our dialogue with Romania on this issue, we have focused on two tracks:

We have pressed the Romanian government to allow those children whose matches with prospective parents have been approved by the government, and whose adoptions thus are in the final stages, to be exempt from the current moratorium. In response, the Romanian government announced in October 2001 its intention to review these so-called "pipeline" cases with a view to their early resolution, even while the moratorium remains in effect.

There is widespread agreement that the prior Romanian legal framework did not always protect the best interests of children, creating opportunities for corruption at many levels. Reforms underway now will, we hope, lead to the creation of a more transparent inter-country adoption system that safeguards children while preventing fraud. The United States government, in conjunction with others concerned about child welfare, has made recommendations to the Romanian government on how to improve its adoption process and has assisted the government of Romania in drafting new child welfare laws. We are hopeful that the draft laws soon will be passed by the Romanian parliament. We intend to continue our close and frank dialogue with Romanian officials on these issues. However, fundamental decisions on these issues are the purview of the Romanian government.

We know that there are disappointed prospective parents whose plans to adopt Romanian children have been adversely affected by this moratorium. The U.S. Government places great importance on resolving this issue so that these children can be placed in loving homes. We will continue to press for prompt completion of the new adoption law that is needed before international adoptions can resume. This will remain a high priority until the moratorium is lifted.

For additional information, you may also wish to access the web site of the Romanian Embassy in Washington: http://www.roembus.org. You may also contact the Romanian Embassy through the following e-mail address: tmaxim@roembus.org. Information is also available on the State Department's web site: http://travel.state.gov and on the web site of the U.S. Embassy in Bucharest: http://www.usembassy.ro.

There are new laws being publicly debated in Bucharest and the Romanian government is receiving public suggestions and comments up until May 5th. For a copy of the law in English click here. For more information on the proposed laws visit the Embassy of Romania's website.